For such disc brakes having a sliding caliper, which could comprise one or more brake discs in axially fixed or sliding arrangement, the caliper is guided in relation to a caliper or brake carrier in a sliding manner, in which the caliper carrier, for example, will be fixed to an axle body or to a similar section of the vehicle underframe being stationary in relation to that axle body. Alternatively, it is also possible that the brake caliper is arranged in relation to a carrier section in a sliding manner, which is integral with the axle body or with surrounding stationary sections of the vehicle frame.
A typical brake caliper of the sliding type, as it is often used in the field of disc brakes for utility vehicles, comprises a substantially frame-like shape with a housing section, which serves for receiving a brake actuation mechanism, a bridge section being opposite to that housing section and two wing or arm sections, which connect the housing section and the bridge section, in which thereby usually at least one brake disc is encompassed by both wing sections and the bridge section. In the area of the housing section an inner brake pad having an inner brake pad holder is provided, opposite to which at the other side of the at least one brake disc an outer brake pad with a corresponding brake pad holder is arranged, so that during brake actuation both the inner brake pad and at the same time the outer brake pad due to a closed force flow and the thereby induced sliding motion of the brake caliper opposite to the direction of the actuating force of the brake actuation mechanism come into attachment with the brake disc.
Such sliding caliper with all its sections as a whole can be made of one piece or of several caliper components being bolted together, for example with a bridge section being fixed to the face surfaces of the wings by means of correspondingly dimensioned screw bolts.
For the purpose of guiding the brake caliper on the caliper carrier different mechanisms and techniques are known in the prior art.
One common arrangement includes guiding elements in the form of slide pins or guiding bolts, which are axially guided in corresponding slide bearings, so that the brake caliper can be displaced in relation to the stationary caliper carrier. In order to enable a perfect displaceable support of the brake caliper in relation to the carrier for that usually at least two slide bearings are required, in which one of the slide bearings is configured as a fixed bearing, which is being configured to almost take up the entire forces which appear during the sliding motion. At least one further slide bearing, which counteracts any rotation of the brake caliper around the first slide bearing, is configured as a floating bearing in order to also provide a dampening effect and a compensation of manufacturing tolerances. Such arrangements, for example, are known from GB 2120330 A and DE 10248948 B4.
Moreover, from U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,611 it is already known to use one single slide pin for guidance, by means of which the brake caliper is fixed to a carrier in a sliding manner. In order to prevent rotation of the brake caliper, furthermore, a tongue or protrusion has been provided at the brake caliper, which engages with a corresponding bore or recess of the carrier. A mechanism with one single slide pin is also disclosed by EP 1454076 B1, in which the brake caliper furthermore is radially guided to both sides of the brake disc in relation to the carrier by means of guiding shoulders being set under pretension. For that leaf spring-like elements are provided between the guiding shoulders of the brake carrier and the corresponding abutment sections of the brake caliper, which counteract any noise generation and rattling.
For example, from DE 3400544 C2 it is known to arrange one single guide pin in close proximity to the rotation axis of the brake disc, by means of which the brake caliper is guided in relation to a relatively small brake carrier which is substantially provided within the projection surface of the brake disc. In order to prevent a rotation of the brake caliper during a brake actuation due to the rotational motion of the brake disc, for this embodiment two flat sliding shoulders are provided at the carrier at positions being radially opposite to each other in relation to the guide pin, at which sliding shoulders the brake caliper comes into attachment with corresponding sliding surfaces.
However, also guiding mechanisms between a brake caliper and brake carrier are known which do not require any guide pins at all. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,136,761 discloses a mechanism, in which the brake caliper is guided by means of four equally arranged V-shaped guiding recesses in the carrier.